PHAN Game

ABSTRACT

A method for playing a game with a plurality of players of all ages, a plurality of chips, and a determination element comprising (a) distributing the chips evenly among the players; (b) determining a wager; (c) creating a pot based on the wager; (d) manipulating the determination element to identify an indicia; and (e) adjusting the player&#39;s chips based on the identified indicia. The player&#39;s chips are adjusted in one of four ways. Rounds of the game are completed until one player has all of the chips. The determination element of the game can be a six-sided die, or a board with recesses. Manipulation of the determination element can occur by rolling the die, or by using a cup, spring or vibration device.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to methods of playing games and, more particularly, to a multi-player wagering game for all ages using chips and a determination element.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Board, card and other types of parlor games have been a popular pastime for many years. While consumers have many choices when purchasing a game, most games have age restrictions. Games that are designed for children are often found boring or juvenile to adults, whereas games that are designed for adults are not appropriate for children because of the skill level needed or their content. Therefore, there is a need in the art for a family-friendly game that can be played and enjoyed by all ages.

Many commercial games sold in the United States require that the players be able to read English to play. This is not advantageous because it precludes the inclusion of children who have not yet learned to read as players. The potential market for these games is also limited because it will not appeal to immigrants who speak another language or exporters who may wish to sell the game abroad. It is an object of this invention to provide a game that can be played by anyone, regardless of the language he or she speaks.

A further drawback of some games in the art is that they must be played until the end of the game to determine a winner. Thus, a game that can be concluded at any point during the game with a definitive winner is desirable.

It is with respect to these problems that the present invention is addressed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention described herein is a game called PHAN. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a method of playing a multi-player game is disclosed. In this method, a plurality of chips and a determination element are provided. The determination element comprises at least four different indicia. The plurality of chips is distributed equally among the players so that each player has a set of chips. The players determine a wager of chips for at least one round of the game. Based on this wager, a pot is created with chips from each player that is equal to the wager. A player then manipulates the determination element such that it identifies one of the determination element's four indicia (i.e. winning the pot, winning half the pot, not winning the pot, or putting the wager into the pot). Based on the indicia identified, the player makes an adjustment to the player's set of chips. For winning the pot, the player adds the chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. For winning half the pot, the player adds half the chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. If there is an odd number of chips in the pot, one chip more will be left in the pot. For not winning the pot, the player does not add any chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. For putting the wager into the pot, the player puts chips into the pot equal to the wager for the round. Each player manipulates the determination element and adjusts his or her set of chips as described above to complete a round. Additional rounds of the game are played until one of the players has all of the chips.

In other aspects of the method, the determination element is a die with six sides and has rounded corners. Each side of the die corresponds to an indicia of the determination element, where a first side has a first indicia, a second side has a second indicia, a third and fourth side have a third indicia, and a fifth and sixth side have a fourth indicia. The first indicia corresponds to winning the pot. The second indicia corresponds to winning half the pot. The third indicia corresponds to not winning the pot. The fourth indicia corresponds to putting the wager into the pot. Each indicia is uniquely identified on the die by at least a letter, color, or both a letter and color. The manipulation of the determination element in this aspect of the invention consists of rolling the die so that it can land on one of its six sides.

In a second embodiment of the invention, the determination element is a board with a plurality of recesses and a ball that is sized to rest in a static position in any one of the recesses. There are at least four recesses, and at least one recess corresponds to a first indicia, a second indicia, a third indicia and a fourth indicia. The first indicia corresponds to winning the pot. The second indicia corresponds to winning half the pot. The third indicia corresponds to not winning the pot. The fourth indicia corresponds to putting the wager into the pot. In various arrangements of the invention, the recess size and count for one of the indicia is different from the recess size and count for at least one of the other indicia. In some configurations, the recess size for the first indicia is the smallest, the recess size for the second indicia is larger than the first indicia but smaller than the third and fourth indicia, the recess size for the third indicia is larger than the first and second indicia but smaller than the fourth indicia, and the recess size for the fourth indicia is the largest. Where this board with recesses is used, manipulation of the determination element can comprise receiving the ball onto the board and permitting the ball to come to rest in a static position within one of the recesses on the board.

In a third embodiment of the invention, manipulating the determination element can consist of initiating a disturbance on the surface of the board to cause the ball to move until it seats within one of the recesses. In various arrangements, the disturbance to the board is caused by a vibration device.

A further aspect of the invention relates to a game comprising a determination element with at least four indicia, a first plurality of chips divided among the game's players, a second plurality of chips in a pot from a wager of an equal number of chips from each player, a manipulation apparatus, a set of instructions governing the interactions among the game pieces, and a box containing the game pieces. The instructions govern the interaction between and among the determination element, chips and the manipulation apparatus. They provide for distributing the first plurality of chips among the players equally, predetermining a wager of chips for at least one round of the game, creating the pot with chips from each player equal to the wager, using the manipulation apparatus to produce a response from the determination element that identifies one of at least four indicia, and adjusting the player's set of chips in response to the indicia (i.e. winning the pot, winning half the pot, not winning the pot, or putting the wager into the pot). As described above, for winning the pot, the player adds the chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. For winning half the pot, the player adds half the chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. If there is an odd number of chips in the pot, one chip more will be left in the pot. For not winning the pot, the player does not add any chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. For putting the wager into the pot, the player puts chips into the pot equal to the wager for the round. Each player manipulates the determination element and adjusts his or her set of chips as described above to complete a round. Additional rounds of the game are played until one of the players has all of the chips.

In another aspect of the game, the determination element is a die with six sides. Each side of the die corresponds to an indicia of the determination element, where a first side has a first indicia, a second side has a second indicia, a third and fourth side have a third indicia, and a fifth and sixth side have a fourth indicia. Each indicia is uniquely identified on the die by at least a letter, color, or both a letter and color. The manipulation apparatus in certain aspects of the game is a cup, spring, or vibration device.

These and other aspects, features and advantages shall be apparent from the accompanying drawings and description of certain embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a flow chart illustrating the basic steps in the method of play of the present game;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the game, according to a first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 shows elevation views of each side of the die;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the game, according to a second embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5A is a top elevation view of a first configuration of recesses in the game board according to the second embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5B is a top elevation view of a second configuration of recesses in the game board according to the second embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 5C is a top elevation view of a third configuration of recesses in the game board according to the second embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is described in connection with several embodiments for a wagering game with chips. The game is played according to the method shown in FIG. 1. In order to play the game, a plurality of players, a plurality of chips, and a determination element are needed. The plurality of players can be any number of players greater than or equal to two. The plurality of chips must be equal to or greater than the number of players, such that the chips can be equally distributed among the players. In one particular embodiment, each player has at least 20 chips when the plurality of chips is distributed equally among the players. The chips are preferably made of plastic or any other suitable material that is inexpensive to manufacture and can withstand continued use. The chips used with this invention are generally round because round chips are standard with other games (e.g., poker) and are commercially available to users who wish to purchase more chips. While the patent refers to using chips with this invention, a person of ordinary skill in the art would understand that similar tokens can be used. For example, the chips can be replaced with coins, cards, and the like. The determination element comprises at least four different indicia.

As described in FIG. 1, the game begins with the plurality of chips being evenly distributed among the players 110. This distribution results in each player having his or her own set of chips for the game. Before starting the game, the players must agree upon a wager for at least one round of the game 120. The wager can vary from round to round in the game, or it can stay the same for the entire game. If the players cannot agree on a wager, a default wager of 50% of each player's chips can be used. A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the wager can be determined either before or after the plurality of chips are distributed among the players.

After the chips are distributed and the wager is determined, the players create the pot 130. The pot is created by each player putting in a number of chips equal to the wager. For a game with 4 players each having 50 chips and a wager of 10 chips, for example, the pot will comprise 40 chips.

A game round consists of each player manipulating the determination element to identify an indicia 140, and adjusting his or her respective set of chips 160 according to the identified indicia 150. In the preferred embodiments, the player that starts the round is decided by either manipulating the determination element to see which player gets a certain indicia first, or upon agreement of the players. Rotation to the next player is decided by the players, but is generally either in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction.

Each player must manipulate the determination element such that it identifies only one of the indicia 140 when the manipulation is complete. If no or multiple indicia are identified, the player must manipulate the determination element again. Based on the indicia identified 150, the player adjusts his or her set of chips 160. The indicia on the determination correspond to one of the following: winning the pot 161, winning half the pot 162, not winning the pot 163, or putting the wager into the pot 164.

If a player's manipulation of the determination element identifies the first 151 “winning the pot” indicia 161, the player adds the chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. In a preferred embodiment, this corresponds to the player getting all of the chips in the pot, minus his or her first wager. The remaining players (excluding the player that won the pot) must put another wager in to refill the pot. Using the example above of four players with a 10-chip wager, the player that won the pot would have 70 chips, the three other players would have 30 chips each, and the pot would have 40 chips after adjusting the chips in response to the identified indicia 151, 161.

If a player's manipulation of the determination element identifies the second 152 “winning half the pot” indicia 162, the player adds half of the chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. In the event that the pot has an odd number of chips, the extra chip is left in the pot. In a preferred embodiment, winning half the pot corresponds to the player getting half of the pot and the remaining players (excluding the player that won half the pot) putting in half of the wager to refill the pot. Using the example above of four players with a 10-chip wager, the player that won half the pot would have 60 chips, the three other players would have 35 chips each, and the pot would have 35 chips after adjusting the chips in response to the identified indicia 152, 162.

If a player's manipulation of the determination element identifies the third 153 “not winning the pot” indicia 163, the player does not add any chips from the pot to the player's set of chips. No adjustments are made to the pot or the other players' sets of chips. Using the example above of four players with a 10-chip wager, the player that got “not winning the pot” would have 40 chips, the three other players would have 40 chips each, and the pot would have 40 chips after adjusting the chips in response to the identified indicia 153, 163.

If a player's manipulation of the determination element identifies the fourth 154 “putting the wager into the pot” indicia 164, the player must put chips from the player's set of chips into the pot in an amount equal to the wager. No adjustments are made to the other players' sets of chips. Using the example above of four players with a 10-chip wager, the player that got “putting the wager into the pot” would have 30 chips, the three other players would have 40 chips each, and the pot would have 50 chips after adjusting the chips in response to the identified indicia 154, 164.

A game round is completed when each of the players manipulates the determination element 140 and adjusts the chips 150, 160 as described above once. At the end of the game round, the game can be ended or another round can be played. If another game round is played 180, the players can use the same wager as the previous round 130, or agree upon a new wager 120. It is advantageous to be able to adjust the wager after a game round because a player may not have enough chips to put the wager from the previous round into the pot. Or, the wager can be adjusted to make the game more competitive. In the preferred embodiment, when a player runs out of chips either during a round or at the end of a round, that player is eliminated from the game. Rounds of the game are played until one player has all of the chips 170, 190, or when the players decide to stop.

In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, the determination element is a six-sided die, as shown in FIGS. 2-3. The game can be played on a flat surface, such as a tabletop, or with a board. The preferred embodiment utilizes a board 230, which is a flat surface with walls on all four sides, similar to a box lid. This configuration is advantageous because it provides a controlled area to roll the die and can serve as a box to store the game when it is not being played.

Referring to FIGS. 2-3, the die 210 preferably has rounded corners 313 to facilitate rolling. The manipulation of the die in this embodiment consists of rolling the die and permitting it to land on one of the six sides. The six sides of the die comprise the following: a first side with a first indicia 310, a second side with a second indicia 320, a third and fourth side with a third indicia 330, and a fifth and sixth side with a fourth indicia 340. In some configurations, the first indicia corresponds to winning the pot 161, the second indicia corresponds to winning half the pot 162, the third indicia corresponds to not winning the pot 163, and the fourth indicia corresponds to putting the wager into the pot 164. In the preferred embodiment, the indicia on each side of the die are uniquely identified by at least a color 311, a letter 312 or both a color 311 and a letter 312. As shown in FIG. 3, each side of the die has one of four indicia 310, 320, 330, 340. The first indicia 310 on the top of the die is green with the letter “A”, which corresponds to winning the pot. The second indicia 320 on the bottom of the die is yellow with the letter “H”, which corresponds to winning half the pot. The third indicia 330 on the front and back of the die is blue with the letter “N”, which corresponds to not winning the pot. The fourth indicia 340 on the left and right sides of the die is red with the letter “P”, which corresponds to putting the wager into the pot. The letters are written in a way and in a color such that they are visible against the color background. It is preferable that the letters be written in black so that they stand out against the green, yellow, blue and red backgrounds of the indicia. Having both a color and a letter designate the indicia is advantageous because it allows everyone to understand the outcome of the roll, even if the player is a child and cannot read, or is someone who does not know English. Using the letters “A”, “H”, “N” and “P” is desired because they easily signal the action that is required (i.e. win “all”, win “half”, win “none”, or “put” chips into the pot). However, it is appreciated that other letters, symbols and/or colors can be used. For commercial embodiments of this game sold abroad, the letters “A”, “H”, “N” and “P” can instead be Chinese characters or Arabic letters.

It is preferred that the blue “N” and the red “P” both appear on two sides of the die, while the green “A” and the yellow “H” only appear on one side of the die. It is preferred that two blue “N's” are on opposite sides of the die, and the two red “P's” are on opposite sides of the die, as shown in FIG. 3. Such a configuration decreases the odds of a player winning all of the pot or half of the pot, and makes the game more competitive. An optimal size for the die to allow each indicia to be properly displayed is ⅝ in×⅝ in×⅝ in. It will be appreciated that larger and smaller die can be used. However, the die must be of sufficient size to display each indicia and should not be so large that more than a table top is required to roll the die. The die is made out of plastic, wood, or any other sufficiently durable and lightweight material that can withstand continued use and will not damage the surface upon which it is rolled.

A game constructed in accordance with the above embodiment is referred to as PHAN, named after the letters depicted on the die in the preferred embodiment. FIG. 2 depicts an embodiment of the game. It comprises a board 230 with walls and an open top, a determination element 210 with at least four indicia, a pot of chips 220, a set of chips 221, 222, 223 224 for each player, a manipulation apparatus (not shown) and a set of instructions 240. The board 230 is a box that is appropriately sized and shaped to house the determination element, chips, manipulation apparatus (if needed), and the set of instructions. As discussed above, the board 230 can be part of the box that is used to store the game. The lid of the box is not shown in FIG. 2. The pot of chips 220 is created as described above, and at the start of the game, comprises a number of chips from each player that is equal to the wager. The manipulation apparatus can be any suitable apparatus that can manipulate the determination element to identify one of its four indicia, including the player's hand, a cup, a spring, or a vibration device. The determination element 210 shown in FIG. 2 is a die with six sides, although it is appreciated that other determination elements may be used in various embodiments of this invention. Where the determination element is a die with six sides, it can comprise a first side with a first indicia 310, a second side with a second indicia 320, a third and fourth side with a third indicia 330, and a fifth and sixth side with a fourth indicia 340. Each indicia can be uniquely identified by at least a color 311, a letter 312 or both a color 311 and a letter 312, as described above and shown in FIGS. 2-3. The instructions 240 govern the interactions between and among the determination element 210, the chips 220, 221, 222, 223, 224, and the manipulation apparatus. The instructions describe how to play the game, as shown in FIG. 1 and discussed above. This consists of distributing the chips equally among the players so that each player has a respective set of chips 221, 222, 223, 224, predetermining a wager for at least one round of the game, and creating the pot 220 equal to the wager from each player. The manipulation apparatus is then used to produce a response from the determination element 210 that identifies one of its indicia. Based on the identified indicia, the player adjusts his or her respective set of chips. Referring to the discussion above, the identified indicia correspond to winning the pot 161, winning half the pot 162, not winning the pot 163, or putting the wager into the pot 164. In a game round, each player is given the opportunity to manipulate the determination element and adjust his or her set of chips based on the identified indicia 180. Rounds of the game are played, with either the same or a new wager, until one player has all of the chips 170 or the players decide to stop playing.

FIG. 4 depicts a second embodiment of the invention, in which the determination element is a board 430 with a plurality of recesses 431, 432, 433, 434 and a ball 410 that is sized to rest in a static position in any one of the recesses. The board 430 preferably has side walls high enough to contain the ball 410 when it is rolled on the board. The manipulation of the determination element in this embodiment comprises receiving the ball onto the board and permitting the ball to come to rest in a static position within one of the recesses on the board. The rest location on the board includes the identifying indicia, whereas the ball does not include identifying indicia in this embodiment. As with the first embodiment, the second embodiment also includes a pot 420 of chips, and a set of chips 421, 422, 423, 424 for each player. This embodiment can have a set of instructions 440, as discussed above.

In a third embodiment, the manipulation device of the second embodiment comprises initiating a disturbance of the surface of the board to cause the ball to move until it seats within one of the recesses. This disturbance can be caused by a vibration device, including one that can be manually initiated to continue for a proscribed period of time. As generally known in the industry, the vibration device can be mechanical or motor-driven. One mechanical vibration device consists of using a cantilever weight and a gear with a peg, where the gear's peg is positioned to hit the cantilever weight and cause it to oscillate. The cantilever weight is positioned so that it hits the game board when it oscillates, causing a vibration. The Hasbro® Perfection game, for example, utilizes a mechanical vibration device known in the art to cause the board to pop up after a proscribed period of time. A similar vibration device can be used with the present invention. Alternatively, a small vibration motor device can be used. Similar small vibrating motors are used in massaging products, cell phones, and video game controllers utilizing haptic feedback. To reduce the manufacturing costs of the game and the requirement for batteries, utilizing a mechanical vibration device is preferred.

Further configurations of the board in the second embodiment of the invention are shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B and 5C. In some configurations, as shown in FIG. 5A, the board 500 has at least four recesses, and at least one of the recesses corresponds to a first indicia 510, a second indicia 511, a third indicia 512 and a fourth indicia 513. The first indicia corresponds to winning the pot 161, the second indicia corresponds to winning half the pot 162, the third indicia corresponds to not winning the pot 163, and the fourth indicia corresponds to putting the wager into the pot 164, as described above and shown in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 5B, in certain configurations of board 520 with recesses 521, 522, 523 and 524, the size and number of the recesses for one indicia 521 is different than the size and number of the recesses for at least one of the other indicia 523, 524. The board 540 configuration in FIG. 5C is similar to that of FIG. 5B with the additional requirement that the first indicia 541 is the smallest, the recess size for the second indicia 542 is larger than the first indicia 541 but smaller than the third and fourth indicia 543, 544, the recess size for the third indicia 543 is larger than the first and second indicia 541, 542 but smaller than the fourth indicia 544, and the recess size for the fourth indicia 544 is the largest. A person of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the dimensions of the recesses depicted in FIGS. 4, 5A, 5B and 5C are for illustrative purposes only. Actual recess dimensions will vary based on the size of the board, the size of the ball 410, and the desired difficulty level of the game. Additionally, the recess configuration shown in FIGS. 5, 5A, 5B and 5C are examples, and should not be construed as limiting.

While the invention has been described in connection with certain embodiments, it is defined by the claims that accompany this description and is not to be read as being restricted to any one embodiment thereof. 

1. A method of playing a game among a plurality of players, comprising: (a) providing a plurality of chips and a die wherein the die comprises only four different indicia; (b) distributing the plurality of chips equally among the plurality of players such that each player has a respective set of chips; (c) predetermining a wager of chips that is more than one for at least one round of the game; (d) creating a pot, wherein the pot comprises a number of chips from each player that is equal to the wager; (e) manipulating the die to produce a response from the die that identifies only one of the at least four indicia; (f) adjusting the respective set of chips for a first of the plurality of players in response to the identified indicia, wherein the adjusting is conducted as a function of the identified indicia and includes only one of: (1) winning the pot, wherein the first player adds the chips from the pot to the first player's set of chips; (2) winning half the pot, wherein the first player adds half of the chips from the pot to the first player's set of chips, and wherein, in the event that an odd number of chips are in the pot, the adjusting step further comprises leaving in the pot one chip more than the first player adds to the first player's set of chips; (3) not winning the pot, wherein the first player does not add any chips from the pot to the first player's set of chips; and (4) putting the wager into the pot, wherein the first player puts chips from the first player's set of chips into the pot in an amount equal to the wager for that round; (g) repeating the manipulating and adjusting steps once for each player to complete the round; and (h) repeating at least steps (d) through (g) in additional rounds of the game until one of the plurality of players has all of the chips.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the die comprises six sides.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the die has rounded corners.
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the six sides of the die comprise a first side with a first indicia, a second side with a second indicia, a third and fourth side with a third indicia, and a fifth and sixth side with a fourth indicia.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first indicia corresponds to winning the pot, the second indicia corresponds to winning half the pot, the third indicia corresponds to not winning the pot, and the fourth indicia corresponds to putting the wager into the pot.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein each indicia is uniquely identified by at least a color, a letter, or both a color and a letter.
 7. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of manipulating the die comprises rolling the die and permitting the die to land on one of the six sides.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the determination element comprises a board with a plurality of recesses and a ball that is sized to rest in a static position in any one of the plurality of recesses.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein there are at least four recesses in the board, wherein at least one of the recesses corresponds to a location on the board at each of a first indicia, a second indicia, a third indicia, and a fourth indicia.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first indicia corresponds to winning the pot, the second indicia corresponds to winning half the pot, the third indicia corresponds to not winning the pot, and the fourth indicia corresponds to putting the wager into the pot.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein at least one of the recess size and the recess count at the location on the board corresponding to one of the indicia is different than at least one of the recess size and the recess count at the location on the board corresponding to others of the indicia.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the recess size for first indicia is the smallest, the recess size for the second indicia is larger than the first indicia but smaller than the third and fourth indicia, the recess size for the third indicia is larger than the first and second indicia but smaller than the fourth indicia, and the recess size for the fourth indicia is the largest.
 13. The method of claim 8, wherein manipulating the determination element comprises receiving the ball onto the board and permitting the ball to come to rest in a static position within one of the recesses on the board.
 14. The method of claim 9, wherein manipulating the determination element further comprises initiating a disturbance of a surface of the board to cause the ball to move until it seats within one of the plurality of recesses.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the disturbance to the board is caused by a vibration device.
 16. (canceled)
 17. The game apparatus of claim 21, wherein the die comprises six sides.
 18. The game apparatus of claim 17, wherein the six sides of the die comprise a first side with a first indicia, a second side with a second indicia, a third and fourth side with a third indicia, and a fifth and sixth side with a fourth indicia.
 19. The game apparatus of claim 18, wherein each indicia is uniquely identified by at least a color, a letter, or both a color and a letter.
 20. The game apparatus of claim 21, wherein the manipulation apparatus is the cup.
 21. A game, effective for stimulating enjoyment and interaction between two or more family and friends, said game comprising: a plurality of game playing components, said plurality of game playing components comprising: (i) a die comprising only four different indicia, each indicia comprising a color and a letter; (ii) a first plurality of chips arrangeable by a plurality of players into a pot comprising a second plurality of chips which is equal to a wager of an equal number of chips from each of the plurality of players; (iii) a manipulation apparatus, wherein the manipulation apparatus is selected from the group consisting of a cup, a spring, or a vibration device; (iv) a box comprising a bottom panel and a plurality of side panels, configured to store at least the die and the chips, and further configured to receive the die to produce a response from the die; wherein the game is played as follows: (a) distributing the first plurality of chips equally among the plurality of players such that each player has a respective set of chips; (b) predetermining the wager of chips that is more than one for at least one round of the game; (c) creating the pot equal to the wager from each player; (d) using the manipulation apparatus and the box to produce a response from the die that identifies only one of the at least four indicia; (e) adjusting the respective set of chips for a first of the plurality of players in response to the indicia, wherein the adjusting is conducted as a function of the identified indicia and includes only one of: (1) winning the pot, wherein the first player adds the chips from the pot to the first player's set of chips, (2) winning half the pot, wherein the first player adds half the chips from the pot to the first player's set of chips and wherein, in the event that an odd number of chips are in the pot, the adjusting step further comprises leaving in the pot one chip more than the first player adds to the first player's set of chips, (3) not winning the pot, wherein the first player does not add any chips from the pot to the first player's set of chips, and (4) putting the wager into the pot, wherein the first player puts chips from the first player's set of chips into the pot in an amount equal to the wager for that round; (f) repeating the manipulating and adjusting steps once for each player to complete the round; and (g) repeating at least steps (c) through (f) in additional rounds of the game until one of the plurality of players has all of the chips.
 22. The game apparatus of claim 18, wherein the first indicia corresponds to winning the pot, the second indicia corresponds to winning half the pot, the third indicia corresponds to not winning the pot, and the fourth indicia corresponds to putting the wager into the pot. 